The present invention relates to an improved cable clamp which can be used to terminate a cable, for example to a bus bar.
The cable clamps shown in Cornell U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,357,068, 4,479,694, 4,458,462, and Des No. 296,277 (all assigned to the assignee of the present invention) have been found to provide excellent operational characteristics. They can be easily installed without special tools; they provide high cable pull-out resistance and low electric resistance; and the inner part of the clamp can be assembled into the outer part of the clamp in two separate orientations, each adapted to terminate a particular diameter cable.
However, the above-described cable clamps do exhibit certain disadvantages. In particular, when mounted to a mounting surface (such as a bus bar) they require an amount of headroom over the mounting surface which may be excessive for some applications. As electrical systems are made smaller, it becomes increasingly important to minimize the headroom required for cable clamps. Furthermore, because the free ends of the two parts of the clamping device have a substantial thickness, a relatively long fastener or stud is required to secure the cable clamp in place on the mounting surface.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved cable clamping device which reduces the amount of headroom required for the clamping device, which reduces the thickness of the free ends of the parts of the clamping device, and which therefore reduces the length of the fastener required to secure the clamping device in place.